Section 19a-342 - (Formerly Sec. 1-21b). Smoking prohibited. Exceptions. Signs required. Penalties(a) As used in this section: (1) "Smoke" or "smoking" means the burning of a lighted cigarette, cigar, pipe or any other similar device, whether containing, wholly or in part, tobacco, cannabis, or hemp;(2) "Any area" means the interior of the facility, building or establishment and the outside area within twenty-five feet of any doorway, operable window or air intake vent of the facility, building or establishment;(3) "Cannabis" means marijuana, as defined in section 21a-240; and(4) "Hemp" has the same meaning as provided in section 22-61l.(b)(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 31-40q, no person shall smoke: (A) In any area of a building or portion of a building, owned and operated or leased and operated by the state or any political subdivision of the state; (B) in any area of a health care institution, including, but not limited to, a psychiatric facility; (C) in any area of a retail establishment accessed by the general public; (E) in any area of an establishment with a permit issued for the sale of alcoholic liquor pursuant to section 30-20a, 30-21, 30-21b, 30-22, 30-22c, 30-28, 30-28a, 30-33a, 30-33b, 30-35a, 30-37a, 30-37e , 30-37f or section 2 of this act, in any area of an establishment with a permit for the sale of alcoholic liquor pursuant to section 30-22aa issued after May 1, 2003, and, on and after April 1, 2004, in any area of an establishment with a permit issued for the sale of alcoholic liquor pursuant to section 30-22a or 30-26; (F) in any area of a school building or on the grounds of such school; (G) within a child care facility or on the grounds of such child care facility, except, if the child care facility is a family child care home, as defined in section 19a-77, such smoking is prohibited only when a child enrolled in such home is present during customary business hours; (H) in any passenger elevator; (I) in any area of a dormitory in any public or private institution of higher education; (J) in any area of a facility equipped with screens for the simulcasting of off-track betting race programs or jai alai games; (K) in any room offered as an accommodation to guests by the operator of a hotel, motel or similar lodging; (L) in any area of a correctional facility or halfway house; or (M) in any area of a platform or a shelter at a rail, busway or bus station, owned and operated or leased and operated by the state or any political subdivision of the state. For purposes of this subsection, "restaurant" means space, in a suitable and permanent building, kept, used, maintained, advertised and held out to the public to be a place where meals are regularly served to the public, "school" has the same meaning as provided in section 10-154a and "child care facility" has the same meaning as provided in section 19a-342a. (2) Subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not apply to the following: (A) Public housing projects, as defined in subsection (b) of section 21a-278a; (B) any classroom where demonstration smoking is taking place as part of a medical or scientific experiment or lesson; (C) notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (E) of subdivision (1) of this subsection, the outdoor portion of the premises of any permittee listed in subparagraph (E) of subdivision (1) of this subsection, provided, in the case of any seating area maintained for the service of food, at least seventy-five per cent of the outdoor seating capacity is an area in which smoking is prohibited and which is clearly designated with written signage as a nonsmoking area, except that any temporary seating area established for special events and not used on a regular basis shall not be subject to the smoking prohibition or signage requirements of this subparagraph; (D) any medical research site where smoking is integral to the research being conducted; or (E) any tobacco bar. For purposes of this subdivision, "outdoor" means an area which has no roof or other ceiling enclosure; "tobacco bar" means an establishment with a permit for the sale of alcoholic liquor to consumers issued pursuant to section 30-22a, that, in the calendar year ending December 31, 2002, generated ten per cent or more of its total annual gross income from the on-site sale of tobacco products and the rental of on-site humidors or, for any tobacco bar that commenced operations during the period beginning January 1, 2003, and ending December 31, 2022, generates at least sixty per cent of the tobacco bar's total annual gross sales from on-site sales of tobacco products, as determined in an annual audit conducted by an independent certified public accountant; and "tobacco product" means cigars and pipe tobacco, and does not include cannabis, cigarettes or chewing tobacco.(c) In each room, elevator, area or building in which smoking is prohibited by this section, the person in control of the premises shall post or cause to be posted in a conspicuous place signs stating that smoking is prohibited by state law. Such signs, except in elevators, restaurants, establishments with permits to sell alcoholic liquor to consumers issued pursuant to chapter 545, hotels, motels or similar lodgings, and health care institutions, shall have letters at least four inches high with the principal strokes of letters not less than one-half inch wide.(d) Any person found guilty of smoking in violation of this section, failure to post signs as required by this section or the unauthorized removal of such signs shall have committed an infraction. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the person in control of a building to post such signs in every room of the building, provided such signs are posted in a conspicuous place in the building.(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require any smoking area inside or outside any building or the entryway to any building or on any property.(f) The provisions of this section shall supersede and preempt the provisions of any municipal law or ordinance relative to smoking effective prior to, on or after October 1, 1993.Conn. Gen. Stat. § 19a-342
(P.A. 74-126, S. 1-3; P.A. 77-284; P.A. 79-410; P.A. 83-27; 83-242; P.A. 84-546, S. 5, 173; P.A. 87-201; 87-589, S. 63; P.A. 93-110 , S. 2 , 5 ; 93-304 ; 93-368 , S. 2 ; 93-435 , S. 62 , 95 ; P.A. 02-110 , S. 1 ; P.A. 03-45 , S. 1 ; 03-235 , S. 2 ; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-3, S. 33; P.A. 04-9 , S. 1 ; P.A. 17-146 , S. 35 ; P.A. 18-167 , S. 7 .)
Amended by P.A. 24-0001,S. 9 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2024 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2024.Amended by P.A. 24-0085,S. 3 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2024 Regular Session, eff. 7/1/2024.Amended by P.A. 23-0103,S. 2 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2023 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2023.Amended by P.A. 22-0092, S. 1 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2022 Regular Session, eff. 5/24/2022.Amended by P.A. 22-0118, S. 510 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2022 Regular Session, eff. 5/7/2022.Amended by P.A. 21-0175, S. 12 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2021 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2021.Amended by P.A. 21-0001, S. 86 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2021 Special Session, eff. 10/1/2021.Amended by P.A. 19-0013, S. 17 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2019 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2019.Amended by P.A. 18-0167, S. 7 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2018 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2018.Amended by P.A. 17-0146, S. 35 of the Connecticut Acts of the 2017 Regular Session, eff. 10/1/2017. Annotations to former section 1-21b : Cited. 184 C. 102 ; 190 C. 235 ; 206 C. 449 ; 212 C. 100 ; 224 C. 666. Cited. 2 CA 600 . Annotation to present section: Legislature's failure to impose smoking ban on casinos and private clubs does not violate equal protection rights of owners of restaurants and cafes subject to the ban and uncertainties of enforcement provide rational basis for exemption. 281 C. 277 .